The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time is the cover story of a special issue of Rolling Stone magazine published in November 2003.[1] The list was based on the votes of 273 rock musicians, critics and industry figures, each of whom submitted a weighted list of 50 albums. Various music genres were featured in the list, including pop, rock, ska, punk, heavy metal, soul, blues, folk, jazz, hip hop, and combinations thereof. The accounting firm Ernst & Young devised a point system to weigh votes for 1,600 submitted titles.[2]
The list was released in book form in 2005, with an introduction written by Steven Van Zandt. The book's list was slightly different, explained in the editor's foreword as the removal of some compilation albums and the consolidation of the two LPs of Robert Johnson's King of the Delta Blues Singers into The Complete Recordings, making room for eight additional albums on the list. Madonna is the only female artist to have four of her albums included on the list.
The list's apparent generational bias toward the 1960s and 1970s prompted a response. Following the publicity surrounding the list, rock critic Jim DeRogatis, a former Rolling Stone editor, published Kill Your Idols: A New Generation of Rock Writers Reconsiders the Classics (ISBN 1-56980-276-9) in 2004. This featured a number of younger critics arguing against the magazine's high evaluation of various "classic" albums, including DeRogatis taking on Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which had been Rolling Stone's top choice.
As with other similar lists from Rolling Stone, it is almost totally made up of the output of British and American artists. Only two albums produced in a non-English speaking country are included in it: Trans-Europe Express, by the German band Kraftwerk (#253) and the Cuban production Buena Vista Social Club (#260). Moreover, the first ten albums were all produced in the 1960s and 1970s. Only five female artists are included in the first 100 albums.
The list also includes many compilations such as "greatest hits" collections and soundtracks.
Contents |
[edit] Top 10 albums
| Pos. | Album Name | Artist |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band | The Beatles |
|
|
Pet Sounds | The Beach Boys |
|
|
Revolver | The Beatles |
|
|
Highway 61 Revisited | Bob Dylan |
|
|
Rubber Soul | The Beatles |
|
|
What's Going On | Marvin Gaye |
|
|
Exile on Main St. | The Rolling Stones |
|
|
London Calling | The Clash |
|
|
Blonde on Blonde | Bob Dylan |
|
|
The Beatles (The White Album) | The Beatles |
[edit] Number of albums from each decade
- 1950s and earlier – 29 albums (5.8%)
- 1960s – 126 (25.2%) (with 7 of the top 10)
- 1970s – 183 (36.6%) (with 3 of the top 10)
- 1980s – 88 (17.6%)
- 1990s – 61 (12.2%)
- 2000s – 13 (2.6%)
[edit] External links
- The list on the Rolling Stone website.
[edit] References
- ^ Levy, Joe; Steven Van Zandt (2006) [2005]. Rolling Stone The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (3rd ed.). London: Turnaround. ISBN 1932958614. OCLC 70672814.
Related news articles:- "The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone (San Francisco, California: Straight Arrow) (Special Collectors Issue). December 11, 2003. ISSN 0035-791X. OCLC 1787396.
- "The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Special Collectors Issue. Rolling Stone. 2003-11-18. http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5938174/the_rs_500_greatest_albums_of_all_time/. Retrieved on 2008-01-08.
- ^ "It's Certainly a Thrill: Sgt. Pepper Is Best Album", USA Today, November 17, 2003.
